From: "Collegevue Church of Christ" Subject: The Beacon - Electronic Edition - 5/24/06 Date: Wednesday, May 24, 2006 1:20 PM Please join us for "The Virtual Bible Study" on Thursday evening at 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central time. Go to www.TheVirtualBibleStudy.com and follow the link to hear the live broadcast. You can also check out archives of past programs and information about podcasting. ________________________________________________ THE BEACON - Electronic Edition - 5/24/06 Did Alexander Campbell Start 'The Church of Christ'? It is a tiresome thing to have to respond, again and again, to the same misguided (and frequently dishonest) charges. But one is compelled, from time to time, to do so. First, Alexander Campbell (1788-1866) never started a church (or claimed such), even though reference works frequently refer to him as "founder" of the "Christian Churches" and "Churches of Christ." lt is a matter of historical record that there were churches of Christ - both in Europe and in America - before Alexander Campbell had a clear concept of what primitive Christianity was all about. Leslie G. Thomas has documented New Testament churches in Scotland, England, and Ireland, dating between 1778 and 1810 (The Restoration Handbook, p. 73). Historical accounts reveal that the Old Philadelphia congregation of the Lord's people, which was near Morrison, Tennessee, was organized in the year 1810. Alexander Campbell was not baptized until 1812, and he continued to be affiliated with the Baptists until the 1820s. Churches of Christ do not owe their origin to Campbell or any other human leader. The fact that some, therefore, delight in using the term "Campbellite" to refer to those who choose to be called simply "Christians," rather than wearing humanly-devised titles, is more of a commentary upon their characters than anything else. - by Wayne Jackson ______________________________________________ Speaking The Truth In Love (Ephesians. 4:15) How do you reconcile the teaching of the New Testament on love (as in 1 Cor. 13), with the requirement to speak the truth with boldness, rebuke sin and discipline the unruly. The answer is, you don't need to reconcile it. It is perfectly reconciled already, because God gave it. It is His perfect law. There is nothing God give us in His Word that we need to "reconcile" or "harmonize." When we obey what God says about the truth, and we obey what God says about love, that's our response to God. There is nothing about rebuking sin, seeking legitimate redress, preaching the truth or exposing error that isn't compatible with the love God defines in 1 Corinthians 13. Nothing about one that cancels the other. Ephesians 4:15 says we are to speak the truth in love. The truth can be spoken, can be applied and obeyed fully - while practicing everything this passage teaches about love. They are perfectly compatible. To say that another way - there is nothing built into truth that contradicts anything else God has said. There is nothing about love that interferes with our devotion to truth in any way. Don't let anyone tell you that you obey what 1 Corinthians 13 teaches about love, but that you stop that obedience when preaching the truth or rebuking sin! And let nobody tell you, that because of the teaching on love, you must compromise in preaching the truth. The one sentence answer to all of this confusion is: Speak the truth in love! - by Warren E. Berkley ____________________________________________ 3 "R's" for the Young Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment. (Eccl. 11:9) If you follow the lusts of your heart to do any and every thing you desire, you better know that you will be judged for it! There are some who dare to tell the young to go ahead and sow their wild oats. But if you follow that advice, it will be to your destruction, because you will reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7, 8). So just remember young person, don't let your sinful pleasure condemn you at the judgment day! Is there one pleasure worth it? Remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity. (Eccl. 11:10) The world says to rejoice by doing whatever feels best. God shows the way to truly rejoice is to "remove sorrow from thy heart". This is how to truly rejoice and is contrasted with the empty and worthless carousing of a rebellious youngster. And the best way to remove sorrow from your heart is to remove the evil from your body. If you follow whatever your heart desires, it will bring you pain, sorrow and grief. Youth is fleeting, so use it wisely. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them. (Eccl. 12:1) Young person, you can be so useful for the Lord. Don't live your life for sinful pleasures, but live your life forGod. If you have your pleasure now, you won't have pleasure remembering how much valuable time, enthusiasm, and energy was wasted to futility. As much as you might not like to think about it, the "evil days" of old age and loss of bodily functions will come. So remember God now, while there is time! - by Andrew Mitchell ___________________________________________ Dress Codes We heard an interesting ad on the radio the other day. It was for a local "watering hole" - a tavern - a bar. The message included several items intended to show the advantages of patronizing that particular establishment: live entertainment, special low prices, great "atmosphere". Nothing new here - most every bar makes the same sort of claims. What was intriguing was that the ad closed with this warning: "Dress code strictly enforced - no tee shirts or torn jeans; 'collared' shirts must be worn". Think of it - a bar with a dress code! Isn't that interesting? How will people react? Our guess is that they will readily comply and the bar will do a great business. If folks want something badly enough, they will submit to any conditions in order to have it. Drinking alcohol and engaging in other acts of ungodliness are, sadly, in that category. A while back, in a study of our public worship services, the following observation was made: "When you know in advance that you will be involved In conducting the services, it should not be too much to ask you to dress appropriately. Tee shirts and jeans are great for some activities, but not for worship, and especially when you have a public part to perform". The reaction was amazing. Some were enraged at the thought of a "dress code" for the worship services. But, while no one can possibly enforce such a policy, we still maintain that dress does make a statement concerning a person and how he feels about what he is doing. Apparently there are even some bartenders who feel the same way! Think about it! - by Greg Gwin ____________________________________________ Trends . . . As much as 20% of the U.S. adult population believes that the Bible is compilation of myths, legends, and fables, and should not be taken literally. - via Gallup Poll 2 Peter 1:16 "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty." ______________________________________________ Some quotes worth pondering . . . "A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read." - Mark Twain "Be true to your work, your word, and your friend." "He that gives good advice, builds with one hand; he that gives good counsel and good example, builds with both; but he that gives good admonition and bad example, builds with one hand and pulls down with the other." "A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he is justly accountable to them for the injury." "I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." ______________________________________________ News from Collegevue . . . May 21, 2006 Thank you for being here today! We are encouraged by presence. Our hope and prayer is that God will be glorified by our worship and that each of us will be edified. We extend a special greeting to our visitors. We hope you will come again soon. Continue to pray for those who are sick, including Buddy Hood, Alvin Lunn, Tina Overton, Hubert Morrow, Norma Goodman, Jane Collins, Kim Futrell, Kris Johnson's mother, and others. Also remember Jennifer Ring's brother in the army in Iraq. We hope you will remember to use your computer to listen to "The Virtual Bible Study" on Thursday at 8pm. This is a good study and teaching opportunity. Tell your friends, co-workers, and neighbors about the program. The Thursday morning class (after a one week recess) will meet again at 10am. Please come! Special thanks to Arthur Hanes, Jacob Gwin, Joel Gwin, and Monty Overton for teaching and preaching while Greg was in a gospel meeting last week at Danville, KY. Our Vacation Bible School is not too far off. The dates are July 10-14. Mark your calendars and make sure to avoid any scheduling conflicts. Nick Law will be with us to teach the adult class. We are supporting Nestor Sanchez to make a preaching trip to Cuba this month. Pray for his work, and for our brethren in Cuba. Figures for the week of 5/7/06: Sunday, Bstudy, 132; AM, 156; PM, 134; Wed., 116; Contrib., $4676 ______________________________________________ "The Beacon - Electronic Edition" is sent out weekly from Columbia, TN, and contains articles and information taken from the most recent "paper" bulletin of the Collegevue Church of Christ. We hope you will use this material in any way you can that will glorify our Father. Please give proper credit to the respective authors. ______________________________________________ Visit our website at: www.Collegevue.com email us at: collegevuecoc@bellsouth.net contact the editor (Greg Gwin) at: greggwin@bellsouth.net